Tuesday, 19 November 2013

Bangalore has been witnessing this
event every year for the past 23 years. A correction - past 22 years and this
year; starting 15th November till the 30th November, Karavalli - housed in Taj
Gateway and voted as Bangalore’s best coastal restaurant is hosting Aqua Fest
2013.

This festival offers sea food lovers
to choose from 18 to 20 types of sea food dishes which are new creations for
the festival with one or more likely to make their way into the regular menu.
Interacting with Chef Naren who has been with Karavalli for 23 years, we learnt
that the fest happens particularly during this time of the year for the very
reason that a variety of fresh sea food is easily available during this period.

Menu

We were seated outdoors and in front
of lay the menu for the evening. It had a listing of delicacies from the
western coast of India. In terms of sea food there were 4 types of fish, clams,
baby octopus, mud crab and tiger prawns. All of this in appetizers alone! For
the mains, we had a prawn curry, a fish curry, Ramaserri idli, coin paratha and
more.

Yes! we ate all of this but it didn't
end there. There were desserts too - Bebinca, Banana-Caramel ice cream, dodhol
and payasam.

Yet again, this was not all. We were
also served some speciality preparations which were outside of the menu.
Surprises in terms of food, food history, facts and knowledge kept springing up
again and again over the course of our meal and conversations for nearly 3.5
hours.

What we ate:

The start was customary - A small
portion of jaggery was provided to cleanse our palate and prepare it for the
fabulous food that was about to arrive.

The appetizers arrived one after the
other and we were only mesmerized even more with every passing dish. The stars
for me that evening were:

‘Kuttanandan Karuvapila Konju’ – Tiger
prawns pan fried with onion, tomato and fresh curry leaves. The ingredients are
simple yet when I did dig into this dish, I was literally on a food high. I was
just one bite into it and wished to have more of it. Yet, I restrained myself
for there was a lot of food coming our way.

‘Kane Jeera Meera’ – Lady fish cooked
in masala enhanced with freshly pounded peppers and cumin was outright
delicious and succulent. My other favorites included ‘Tissryo Sukke’ – clams
cooked in fresh ground coconut and goan spices. I love dishes that exude the
sweetness of ingredients and at the the same time how the spices used bring out
the contrasting spice flavors.

Lady Fish / Kane Fish

Clams Sukke

Clams were something I ate for the
first time and so is the next dish ‘Octopus Uppumunchi’. My first time at it, I
loved the texture which was very similar to calamari or squid rings. While the
preparation was fabulous, the others were in all praise of the chef for the
cooking, tenderness and the flavor just expressed the finesse of the Chef.

There was more fish – ‘Syrian Meen
Roast’; kingfish marinated with Syrian masala and grilled. Shallots brought in
a mild sweetness to the otherwise masaledar preparation.

There was also stir fried mud crab
meat tossed with pepper, chili, butter and more. This was served in a crab
shell and is called ‘ Caranguejos Pimento Fritto’. Though this was nice, I
would have enjoyed it better if there was more crab meat in it. A mention of this
to chef Naren and he brought out a really fascinating fact in no way trying to
justify the preparation – Crabs during full moon nights tend to have lesser
meat content for it is their mating season.

‘Fish Albardado’ – A fillet of pomfret
deep fried with a coating of egg, onion and goan masala drew the least
attention. Not that it was bad, in fact the preparation was really simple, and
the fish was super fresh but all the other preparation over shadowed this
simple dish.

We were not done with our meal yet.
Our mains arrived – Tiger prawns in curry; a specialty of the fisher’s island
of Vypeen , Kochi, Kerala and the classic fish curry of Mangalore. Both these
curries were eaten in the company of Ramasseri idli (specialty of Ramasseri a
small village near Palakad) and coin paratha.

We were also served ‘Shevai Ani
Refogado’ a preparation of mixed sea food with Shevai or string hoppers. This
was mildly flavored to allow the natural flavor of the seafood to come alive.

In desserts, we were served, Bebinca,
Dodhol, Elaneer Payasam and the show stopper Banana-Caramel ice cream. Do not
give those looks.. Actually, even I did when I was first told that it is
‘Banana-Caramel ice cream’. Believe me, when I and the rest of us ate it; we
wished it did not finish. I loved it so much that the chef has promised to
bring me this ice cream before and after my meal at Karavalli every time I
visit. Do I need to say more?

Verdict:

The ambiance here is fabulous; food is
served in copper banana leaf shaped plates with of course a banana leaf laid on
it. Having read Natasha’s blog, I completely second what she has written on her
blog, “We were high on food; alcohol was neither served nor was it missed. Aqua
Fest 2013 Preview night was just not to be missed.” I too recommend that you do
not miss this opportunity to dine at Karavalli between the 15th to the 30th
November; the duration through which the Aqua Fest 2013 is on. To really have a
great experience and savor the most you can in one sitting, this restaurant is
best visited in a larger group.

A meal for 2 at Karavalli will cost an
average of Rs. 2500 plus taxes and charges and each penny is justified for the
food (seafood), ambiance, service and the overall experience.

Quick Tips:

Do not miss the Aqua Fest 2013. It is
on only until 30th November 2013.

Go in a group.

Go for – an experience of India’s western
coast on your plate, banana-caramel ice cream

Tuesday, 12 November 2013

Walk into
a pub or a bar; look up their menu or ask the bartender for recommendations on
cocktails and you will be given an array of options which include the likes of Mojitos,
Bloody Mary, margaritas, martinis, Mai Tai, variations of island ice teas etc.

Cocktail
Lovers, “bored of these; aren’t we?” Don’t we need some innovation on the
drinks being sent out of the bar just as we see in the food being sent out of
the kitchens?

Well, then
how about going to a place that is really willing to innovate and stir up with
some really fabulous, interesting and exciting new concoctions?

A place
does exist… You don’t believe me? Okay, let me tell you “don’t be surprised if
you are recommended ‘Misty Morning’
or ‘LTO Tom Yum’ or ‘The Bath Tub Special’ and so on. You still
don’t believe me? Then, read on -

‘LikeThatOnly’
– the fun Asian Bar and Restaurant in Whitefield is known to focus on
innovation right from its kitchen to behind its bar counter. Comes as no
surprise, ‘LikeThatOnly’ recently introduced some signature and luxury
cocktails to their already innovative cocktail menu. I was really excited to
receive an invitation to the sun downer preview of the new cocktail and short
eats menu.

Flight of Cocktails

If I was
asked at the end of the cocktail tasting session I wouldn't have been able to
give an answer to - “How many cocktails did I try that evening?” But now, I’m
sober and say, “It was 7 new tantalizing cocktail concoctions.” An evening that
involved a lot of drinking started on a note (well, not literally) which I
noticed on a glass coaster ‘Enjoy Responsibly’

Actually,
we started on a sweet note with ‘Misty
Morning’ our first cocktail for the evening stirred up. It is a vodka based
drink with lychee giving it the prime flavor and a hint of flavor from the rose
petals. If you like sweet cocktails then this has to be your drink. To me, it
wouldn't be my first choice.

Some of
the crowd favorites that evening were the ‘Grape
and Goat Cheese Martini’, ‘The Bath
Tub Special’ and ‘LTO Tom Yum’.

Yes, ‘Grape and Goat Cheese Martini’ – again
a vodka based drink (not gin) which involved the use of wine infused grapes and
goat cheese as its ingredients. This was served to us in a martini glass with a
swirl of goat cheese on its interiors. I loved this concoction not only for its
flavor and balance but also the creamy texture of the drink; thanks to the goat
cheese.

‘The Bath Tub Special’ captured
special attention. This was a really refreshing cocktail made with gin,
cucumber and orange at the heart of its concoction. A sip of this and I could
only recollect an age old idiom ‘cool as a cucumber’.

Now this
is another example that just reemphasizes the importance of innovation from
behind the bar counter at LTO. It has to be the ‘LTO Tom Yum’. Yes, ‘Tom Yum’ but not the soup, it’s a vodka based
cocktail shaken with fresh pomegranate and tamarind. Now why the name – ‘Tom
Yum’? Well, that’s because of the secret infusion in the vodka that I’m not
sure if I can let out.

While the
above qualify as my favorites, the ‘Basil Bliss’ and ‘LTO House Passion’ didn’t
fail to please at all. ‘Basil Bliss’
is a rum based cocktail which is shaken with fresh pineapple, sweet and sour
mix and as the name suggests; basil. This cocktail has a mild flavor and is
very easy on the palate.

‘LTO House
Passion’ gets its name from the use of passion fruit that is grown in the
garden at ‘LikeThatOnly’. So yes, this mix is a fruity drink with fresh
watermelon and passion fruit shaken with vodka. Unlike ‘Basil Bliss’; this drink had a really strong flavor of the passion
fruit which tasted good but seemed like an overdose over the course of the
drink.

A perfect
end to a food course is usually a dessert. Likewise, ‘Muddy River’ which I’d classify as a desert cocktail was served to
us. It came as a glass nearly filled with crushed ice, Kahlua and Baileys
poured over it, then topped with a dollop of vanilla ice-cream and finally with
a drizzle of chocolate shaving. I love coffee and needless to say, I so loved
this drink too.

Short Eats

One way to
‘Enjoy Responsibly’ is to eat well before and while you drink. It is said, “One
tends to drink less with distractions like food, games, etc.”

We were
served an array of short eats from their menu. Here is a pictorial review of
some of the food dishes that I absolutely loved –

The other dish that I absolutely loved and couldn't resist myself from was the fried crispy squid; so much so that I do not even have a picture to share.

Events & Offers

There are
a plenty for those who believe in work hard and play hard. How? Every evening,
between 5PM and 8PM you can head to ‘LikeThatOnly’ for ‘Second Shift’ to enjoy
innovative concoctions at special discounts.

Also, the
weekends get even closer with the I’LTO –
‘I’LikeThursdayOnly’ every Thursday, from 7 to 11:30 PM. It’s a time when cocktail lovers can sip and
enjoy the classic and innovative cocktails and the new short eats menu in the
company of signature music from the 80’s.